Bears Head to Eugene with Something to Prove

Thursday, April 18

Eugene, OR

5:00 PM

California

Oregon

Photo by: Peter Fukumae

4/16/2019 2:10 PM | Softball

Pac-12 Network Broadcast Game 1 Pac-12 Network Broadcast Game 2 Pac-12 Network Broadcast Game 3 Live Stats Weekly Notes

By: Cal Athletics

BERKELEY – After an eight-game homestand, its longest stretch at home of the season, California gets back on the road in pursuit of critical Pac-12 wins against reigning league champion Oregon, a feat unattained since May 7, 2016.

The Golden Bears (23-20, 2-12 Pac-12) found recent success to close its series with a game-3 victory against Oregon State, their first since an 8-7, eight-inning win on March 17 at Utah.

Cal's win over the Beavers clipped a string of 10 conference losses, their most since 2017 when they fell on 13-straight occasions in one of the nation's most potent leagues.

For the Bears, who sit in 65th in the RPI, series wins are a must if they hope to be in playoff contention. And, with the Ducks seated at 34th, a series win for Cal could start the conversation again. Historically, it's been a tall order for Cal, who hasn't won a series against Oregon since a 2-1 series victory in 2012. But, that series proves winning in Eugene is possible, albeit difficult.

Cal showed its fight as it recovered Sunday with a balanced effort on both sides of the ball. Cal's leading hitter Lindsay Rood went 3-for-4 at the plate to finish the weekend with her 65th hit of the season, third most in the nation and atop the Pac-12. The senior also added three more stolen bases to remain in the league's front seat with 27 on the season.

Senior ace Kamalani Dung also kept the Beavers off balance giving up just one run behind four strikeouts in 5.0 innings, while Zoe Conley came in to close things out in the top of the sixth and pick up her first save of the season. Dung's 2.15 ERA ranks eighth in the league and the Waianae, Hawaii, native has held opposing batters to .188 average, sixth best in the conference.

The Thursday-Saturday series will be broadcast on the Pac-12 Networks with Amanda Freed and Anne Marie Anderson on the call. Game 1 is slated for a 5 p.m. (PT) start and Game 2 at 7 p.m. The getaway-day game is scheduled for noon.

Bear Business

Lindsay Rood's 65 hits leads the Pac-12 and ranks third in the nation
Rood and teammate Destiny Blueford rank third in the Pac-12 with four triples, along with Stanford's Emily Young
Rood, who was named Pac-12 Player of the Week on March 12 after going 11-for-17 (.647) in Honolulu, currently ranks second in the Pac-12 with a .430 batting average, which ranks 27th nationally. She continues to top the league with 27 steals in as many attempts
Mikayla Coelho leads the Bears with seven home runs and her 26 walks is second in conference
Freshman Makena Smith's 27 RBI lead the Bears, while her .349 batting average is second for Cal
Cal's wins over No. 22 James Madison (7-2) and No. 24 Notre Dame (7-6) mark the first time the Bears have downed two non-conference top-25 opponents since 2016 when they outlasted No. 18 Kentucky (5-1) and another 24th-ranked Fighting Irish squad (8-7)
Cal made a historic run from March 1-9 winning seven consecutive five-inning games, believed to be a program record
Senior ace Kamalani Dung (11-6) holds a 2.15 ERA which ranks eighth in the Pac-12 and has struck out 121 batters, seventh most in the league
Freshman Alexandra Perez's 2.10 ERA ranks seventh in the league behind a 5-0 record in 12 appearances and 43.1 innings of work
Zoe Conley pitched her first no-hitter in a Bear's uniform on March 8 against St. Bonaventure in Honolulu; a 12-0 shutout for the Bears
Two of Cal's four victories in March came on game-winning yard balls from junior Destiny Blueford (8-7 vs Utah in eight) and sophomore Karlee Sparacino (3-1 vs Sac State in nine)
Cal's 4-1 win over OSU clipped a 10-game losing streak in conference play beginning on March 23-April 13
Despite being swept by the No. 1 Bruins, Cal allowed just four runs in the first two games of the series, while UCLA went into the matchup averaging 7.15 runs per outing through the season
Cal kept the top-ranked Bruins scoreless through 13 innings this series and hold them 44 points (.304) under their season average (.348) heading into the weekend
The Bears have done some of their best offensive work under pressure, recording 61 two-out RBIs so far this season, resulting in more than a quarter of their runs

vs. Oregon

The Ducks are ranked eighth in the Pac-12 with a 2-10 league record, and a 17-21 overall running
Recently, Oregon clipped a then-No. 1 UCLA's 19-game win streak in a 4-3 upset in Los Angeles
Sophomore Virginia Tech transfer pitcher Jordan Dail has made an immediate impact in Pac-12. Dail holds top spots in the league in innings pitched (167.2), batters struck out looking (47) and starts (26). She ranks second with 180 strikeouts
Collectively the Oregon ranks eight in the league in batting average (.262), slugging percentage (.400) on-base percentage (.358), compared to Cal's .297 batting average, .427 slugging percentage, and .61 OBP
Oregon is paced by Haley Cruse's 25 runs, Jasmine Sievers' .334 hitting percentage, 10 doubles and 17 RBI and Allee Bunkers 39 hits

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